¹sn Beginning with 9:1, the verse numbers through 9:26 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 9:1 ET = 8:23 HT, 9:2 ET = 9:1 HT, 9:3 ET = 9:2 HT, etc., through 9:26 ET = 9:25 HT. Beginning with 10:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.
²tn Heb “I wish that my head were water.”
³tn Heb “daughter of my people.” For the translation given here see 4:11 and the note on the phrase “dear people” there.
⁴tn Heb “I wish I had in the desert a lodging place [inn, or place to spend the night] for travelers.”
⁵tn Or “bunch,” but this loses the irony; the word is used for the solemn assemblies at the religious feasts.
⁶tn Heb “they are all adulterers, a congregation of unfaithful people.” However, spiritual adultery is, of course, meant, not literal adultery. So the literal translation would be misleading.
⁷tn The words “The Lord says” have been moved up from the end of the verse to make clear that a change in speaker has occurred.
⁸tn Heb “They have readied [or strung] their tongue as their bow for lies.”
⁹tn Heb “but not through honesty.”
¹⁰tn Heb “they go from evil to evil.”
¹¹tn Or “do not acknowledge me”; Heb “do not know me.” But knowing in Hebrew thought often involves more than intellectual knowledge; it involves emotional and volitional commitment as well. For ud~y` meaning “acknowledge” see 1 Chr 28:9; Isa 29:21; Hos 2:20; Prov 3:6. This word is also found in ancient Near Eastern treaty contexts where it has the idea of a vassal king acknowledging the sovereignty of a greater king (cf. H. Huffmon, “The Treaty Background of Hebrew yada,” BASOR 181(1966):31-37).
<sup>12</sup>tn Heb “Be on your guard…Do not trust.” The verbs are second masculine plural of direct address and there seems no way to translate literally and not give the mistaken impression that Jeremiah is being addressed. This is another example of the tendency in Hebrew style to turn from description to direct address (a figure of speech called apostrophe).
<sup>13</sup>tn Heb “cheating, each of them will cheat.”
sn There is perhaps an intentional pun and allusion here to Gen 27:36 and the wordplay on the name Jacob there. The text here reads ‘aqob ya’qob.
<sup>14</sup>tn Heb “their tongues.” However, this is probably not a natural idiom in contemporary English and the tongue may stand as a part for the whole anyway.
<sup>15</sup>tn Or “do not acknowledge me”; Heb “do not know me.” See the note on the phrase “do not take any thought of me” in 9:3.
<sup>16</sup>tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”
sn For the significance of this title see the notes at 2:19 and 7:3.
<sup>17</sup>tn Heb “I will refine/purify them.” The words “in the fires of affliction” are supplied in the translation to give clarity to the metaphor.
<sup>18</sup>tn Heb “daughter of my people.” For the translation given here see 4:11 and the note on the phrase “dear people” there.
<sup>19</sup>tc Heb “For how else shall I deal because of the wickedness of the daughter of my people.” The Masoretic text does not have the word “wickedness.” The word, however, is read in the Greek version. This is probably a case of a word dropping out because of its similarities to the consonants preceding or following it (i.e., haplography). The word “wickedness” (tu^r~) has dropped out before the words “my dear people” (yM!u^-tB^). The causal nuance which is normal for yn}P=m! does not make sense without some word like this and the combination of tu^r~ yn}P=m! does occur in Jer 7:12 and one very like it occurs in Jer 26:3.
<sup>20</sup>tc This reading follows the Masoretic consonants (the Kethib, a Qal active participle from fj^v*). The Masoretes preferred to read “a sharpened arrow” (the Qere, a Qal passive participle from the same root or a homonym, meaning “hammered, beaten”). See HAL 1354 s.v. II fj^v* for discussion. The exact meaning of the word makes little difference to the meaning of the metaphor itself.
<sup>21</sup>tn Heb “They speak deceit.”
<sup>22</sup>tn Heb “With his mouth a person speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets an ambush for him.”
<sup>23</sup>sn See 5:9, 29. This is somewhat of a refrain at the end of a catalog of Judah’s sins.
<sup>24</sup>tn The words “I said” are not in the text, but there is general agreement that Jeremiah is the speaker. Cf. the lament in 8:18-9:1. These words are supplied in the translation for clarity. Some translations follow the Greek text which reads a plural imperative here. Since this reading would make the transition between 9:10 and 9:11 easier it is probably not original but a translator’s way of smoothing over a difficulty.
<sup>25</sup>tn Heb “I will lift up weeping and mourning.”
<sup>26</sup>tn Heb “for the mountains.” However, the context makes clear that it is the grasslands or pastures on the mountains that are meant. The words “for the grasslands” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
<sup>27</sup>tn The words “the Lord said” are not in the text, but it is obvious from the content that he is the speaker. These words are supplied in the translation for clarity.
<sup>28</sup>map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
<sup>29</sup>tn Heb “a heap of ruins, a haunt for jackals.”
<sup>30</sup>tn The words, “I said” are not in the text. It is not clear that a shift in speaker has taken place. However, the words of the verse are very unlikely to be a continuation of the Lord’s threat. It is generally assumed that these are the words of Jeremiah and that a dialogue is going on between him and the Lord in vv. 9-14. That assumption is accepted here.
<sup>31</sup>tn Heb “Who is the wise man that he may understand this?”
<sup>32</sup>tn Heb “And [who is the man] to whom the mouth of the Lord has spoken that he may explain it?”
<sup>33</sup>tn Heb “and they have not walked in it (with “it” referring to “my law”).
<sup>34</sup>tn Heb “they have gone/followed after.” See the translator’s note at 2:5 for the idiom.
<sup>35</sup>tn Or “forefathers,” or “ancestors.” Here the referent could be the immediate parents or, by their example, more distant ancestors.
<sup>36</sup>tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.”
sn See the study notes on 2:9 and 7:3.
<sup>37</sup>tn Heb “Therefore, thus says the Lord…” The person is shifted from third to first to better conform with English style.
<sup>38</sup>tn Heb “I am going to feed this people wormwood and make them drink poison water.” “Wormwood” and “poison water” are not to be understood literally here but are symbolic of judgment and suffering. See, e.g., BDB 542 s.v. hn`u&l^.
³⁹tn Heb “fathers.”
⁴⁰tn Heb “I will send the sword after them.” The sword here is probably not completely literal but refers to death by violent means, including death by the sword.
⁴¹sn He will destroy them but not completely. See Jer 5:18; 30:11; 46:28.
⁴²tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”
sn For the significance of this title see the notes at 2:19 and 7:3.
⁴³tn Heb “Thus says Yahweh of armies.” However, without some addition it is not clear to whom the command is addressed. The words are supplied in the translation for clarity and to help resolve a rather confusing issue of who is speaking throughout vv. 16-21. As has been evident throughout the translation, the speaker is not always indicated. Sometimes it is not even clear who the speaker is. In general the translation and the notes have reflected the general consensus in identifying who it is. Here, however, there is a good deal of confusion about who is speaking in vv. 18, 20-21. The Greek translation has the Lord speaking throughout with second plural pronouns in vv. 18, 21 and the absence of the first line in v. 22. It would be hard to explain how the Masoretic text arose if it were the original text. Critical commentators such as J. Bright, W. Holladay, and W. McKane resolve the issue by dropping out the introductory formula in v. 17 and the first line of v. 22 and assigning the whole lament to Jeremiah. It seems obvious from the first plural pronouns and the content of v. 18 (and probably v. 21 as well) and the fact that the Lord is referred to in other than the first person in v. 20 that he is not the speaker of those verses. I have attempted to resolve the issue by having Jeremiah report the Lord’s command in v. 17 and have the rest of the speech be essentially that of Jeremiah. It should be admitted, however, that the issue is far from resolved. Most translations simply ignore the problem. The GNB (= TEV) is a rare exception.
⁴⁴tn Heb “Consider!”
⁴⁵tn Heb “Call for the mourning women that they may come and send for the wise/skilled women that they may come.” The verbs here are masculine plural, addressed to the people.
⁴⁶tn The words “And I said, ‘Indeed” are not in the text. They have been supplied in the translation to try and help clarify who the speaker is who identifies with the lament of the people.
⁴⁷tn The words “They will wail” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation to make clear that this is the wailing that will be heard.
sn The destruction is still in the future, but it is presented graphically as though it had already taken place.
⁴⁸tn Heb “How we are ruined!”
⁴⁹tn The order of these two lines has been reversed for English stylistic reasons. The text reads in Hebrew “because we have left our land because they have thrown down our dwellings.” The two clauses offer parallel reasons for the cries “How ruined we are! [How] we are greatly disgraced!” But the first line must contain a prophetic perfect (because the lament comes from Jerusalem) and the second a perfect referring to a destruction that is itself future. This seems the only way to render the verse that would not be misleading.
⁵⁰tn The words “I said” are not in the text. The text merely has “Indeed, yes.” The words are supplied in the translation to indicate that the speaker is still Jeremiah though he now is not talking about the mourning woman but is talking to them. See the notes on 9:17-18 for further explanation.
⁵¹tn It is a little difficult to explain how the Hebrew particle yK! is functioning here. Holladay, Jeremiah, 1:311 may be correct in seeing it as introducing the contents of what those who call for the mourning women are to say. In this case, Jeremiah picks up the task as representative of the people.
⁵²tn Heb “Listen to the word of the Lord.”
sn In this context the “word of the Lord” that they are to listen for is the word of the lament that they are to teach their daughters and neighbors.
⁵³tn Heb “Teach…mournful song, and each woman her neighbor lady…”
⁵⁴sn Here Death is personified (treated as though it were a person). Some have seen as possible background to this lament an allusion to Mesopotamian mythology where the demon Lamastu climbs in through the windows of houses and over their walls to kill children and babies.
⁵⁵tn Or “‘Death has climbed…city squares. And the dead bodies of people lie scattered…They lie scattered…but has not been gathered.’ The Lord has told me to tell you this.”” Or “For death will climb…It will enter…It will take away…who gather in the city squares. So tell your daughters and neighbors, ‘The Lord wants you to say, “The dead bodies of people lie scattered…They lie scattered…has not been gathered.”’ The main causes of ambiguity are the particle yK! introducing v. 21 and the verb form rB@D~ at the beginning of v. 22. yK! may be interpreted as introducing a causal sentence giving Jeremiah’s grounds for the commands of v. 19 in which case the verbs would best be understood as prophetic perfects (as in the second alternate translation). Or it may be interpreted as introducing the content of the lament the women are to teach their daughters and neighbors (as in the translation adopted and in the first alternate translation). The form rB@D~ may be interpreted as a Piel masculine singular imperative addressed to Jeremiah (as in the first alternate translation where it is placed at the end for the sake of clarity) or as a Piel infinitive absolute either explaining what the woman are to teach their daughters and neighbors (as in the second alternate translation; cf. GKC §113.h, i for this use of the infinitive absolute) or as equivalent to an imperative addressed to the women telling them to tell their daughters and neighbors the reason for the lament, i.e., the Lord’s promise of widespread death (cf. GKC §113.bb for this use of the infinitive absolute). The translation chosen has opted for v. 21 as the content of the lament and v. 22 as the further explanation that Jeremiah has the women pass on to their neighbors and daughters. This appears to this interpreter to create the least confusion and dislocation in the flow of the passage.
⁵⁶sn It is not always clear why verses were placed in their present position in the editorial process of collecting Jeremiah’s sermons and the words the Lord spoke to him (see Jer 36:4, 32 for reference to two of these collections). Here it is probable that vv. 23-26 were added as a further answer to the question raised in v. 12.
⁵⁷tn Or “Strong people should not brag that they are strong.”
⁵⁸tn Literally “…in their wisdom…in their power…in their riches.”
⁵⁹tn Or “fairness and justice, because these things give me pleasure.” Verse 24 reads in Hebrew, “But let the one who brags brag in this: understanding and knowing me that I, the Lord, do faithfulness, justice, and righteousness in the earth for/that I delight in these.” It is uncertain whether the Hebrew particle yK! before the clause “I delight in these things” is parallel to the yK! introducing the clause “that I, the Lord, act…” or causal giving the grounds for the Lord acting the way he does. In the light of the contrasts in the passage and the emphasis that Jeremiah has placed on obedience to the covenant and ethical conduct in conjunction with real allegiance to the Lord not mere lip service, it is probable that the clauses are parallel. For the use of yK! to introduce clauses of further definition after a direct object as here see GKC §117.h and see BDB 393 s.v. ud~y` Qal 1.a. For parallels to the idea of Yahweh requiring these characteristics in people see Hos 6:6, Mic 6:8.
⁶⁰tn Heb “Behold!”
⁶¹tn Heb “punish all who are circumcised in the flesh.” The translation is contextually motivated to better bring out the contrast that follows.
⁶²tn Heb “all those who are cut off on the side of the head who live in the desert.” KJV and some other older translations have followed the interpretation that this is a biform of an expression meaning “end or remote parts of the [far] corners [of the earth].” This interpretation is generally abandoned by the modern commentaries and lexicons (see, e.g. BDB 802 s.v. ha*P@ 1 and HAL 858 s.v. ha*P@ 1.b). It occurs also in 25:33; 49:32.
⁶³tn Heb “For all of these nations are uncircumcised.” The words “I will do so” are supplied in the translation to indicate the connection with the preceding statement.
sn A contrast is drawn here between circumcision as a mere external cutting of the flesh and a sign of commitment to the covenant and the God of the covenant. The people of these nations practiced circumcision but not as a sign of the covenant. The people of Israel engaged in it as a religious practice but without any obedience to the covenant that it was a sign of or any real commitment to the Lord.
⁶⁴tn Literally “And all the house of Israel is uncircumcised of heart.”